The Nepalese government has “problem” with the deployment of India’s Sashastra Seema Bal along the Indo-Nepal border, reports Anirban Roy.

As New Delhi is planning to boost the deployment of forces along the Indo-Nepal border, the Nepalese government has “problem” with the deployment of India’s Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB).

Nepal’s Foreign Minister Sahana Pradhan told the Hindustan Times that deployment of SSB along the 1,751-km-long border was a security concern for the people of Nepal.

(The SSB has been guarding the Indo-Nepal border since June 2001. Home Minister Shivraj Patil on Saturday informed the Lok Sabha that 20 more battalions of SSB would soon be deployed along the Nepal and Bhutan borders.)

“At times, they (SSB personnel) are dangerous for the people of Nepal,” Pradhan, who is leaving for New Delhi on Thursday, said, adding that New Delhi should immediately try to “restrain” the Indian frontier force.

Pradhan said the killing of 33-year-old Ram Dulare Chamar of Gulariya in Bardiya district on October 27 by SSB personnel had resulted in public outcry in Nepal. Chamar was reportedly shot dead by SSB jawans close to no-man’s-land. It was also reported that the SSB personnel seized Chamar's body, which made the incident more controversial. The entire area was tense for a couple of weeks as the locals have been demanding action against the SSB personnel and compensation to the bereaved family.

Pradhan said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs registered a strong protest with New Delhi. “We hope the Indian government would be kind enough to punish the aberrant SSB personnel,” she said.